The Eleventh Hour
by TrulySheena
Summary: A quick oneshot about Zack and Aerith, pre-Zack's death. Enjoy!


**Written on a whim after beating Crisis Core. I love Zack & Aerith, so I hope you all enjoy this as much as I did writing it :)**

**-TrulySheena**

The soon-to-be flower girl smiled, in a way that, in the future, would bring to life a new kind of feeling within the SOLDIER operative. After falling through the roof of the Sector 5 church, his body was aching, his mind was weary; the SOLDIER could barely keep consciousness. But that didn't mean anything at that moment - at the time, all of his pain had dispersed.

"Are you okay there?" She asked, hesitantly placing the palm of her hand on his forehead. Sweeping a bang away from covering his eyes, the sides of his face began to twitch. With a soft tap to his temple, the mysterious male woke up.

The girl, for just a tiny moment, stopped breathing at the sight of his shockingly blue eyes. They reminded her of something she'd never seen in real life, only in books and photos and in tales from people who had lived beyond the walls of Midgar. The realm where the sun and moon existed in a sweet harmony, passing each other day by day, but rarely making contact whatsoever.

"An angel?" He said, groaning while squinting his eyes a bit harder.

She giggled and folded her hands behind her back. "No, silly. I'm Aerith."

...

"Zack, don't cry," she whispered, wrapping her arms around his neck from behind. For the first time in his life, the SOLDIER felt weak. In his mind, he was pathetic, disgusting, sickening. Zack had killed his best friend, his mentor, the only father figure he had ever had since joining Shinra. It was accidental, but no less inhuman.

Her arms grew tighter around him, pulling him closer to her chest. With a slow, child-like want, Zack turned to face her and held her as tight as he could. Tears streaming down his face, all she could do to keep her own from pooling was to smile. A sweet, comforting smile, just for Zack and Zack alone.

Moving the hand on his back in slow circles, she ran the other through his rain-soaked hair and said, "You know, we all return to the lifestream one day. Zack, please . . . You have to live the way that makes you happy. No regrets."

He sniffled, looking up at her. The emotions within him were chaotic, but a particular one erupted within him, melting throughout his body as he gazed into her loving eyes.

"Aerith . . . ," he whispered, and threw his arms around her. "Don't leave me. Please."

She smiled at him softly, eyes searching for the love that lay within. Even though he had never declared it, his vulnerability was enough to know for sure. Pulling a hand from around him and reaching it up to his face, he leaned into them and let her fingers carress him into a calmer state.

Like he was in now. Zack couldn't remember anything else, not how and why he joined SOLDIER, not the names of his friends and family, nor why the Shinra had planted so many bullets into his body.

But he remembered Aerith. As if she were the sun that sat high above him, only aiding the sweat of fear to roll down his body, he felt her prescence warming him to the farthest reaches of his soul. Her words about returning to the lifestream came to his confused mind, giving him a strange comfort.

And then the corners of his mouth twitched as he tried to smile. Aerith . . . Aerith would be with him soon. No longer in this world, no, but in the world of the lifestream and its painless, ethereal afterlife.

Memories flashed through him once more, visible even when the dark red blood trickled down into his eyes. He wanted to grit his teeth, but he was too worn down. Joyful memories, saddening, exciting, terrifying thoughts all crossed his mind. He didn't want this. Everything was so scrambled up in his head, and somewhere inside, he knew that there was something he needed to hear.

Cloud, lying in front of him, slowly began to fade away. The world around him began to disappear, each sound of the surrounding environment shutting out like a light at an alarming speed. His body began to grow heavy, and Zack knew that he could not hold his eyes open any longer.

And then, out of the midst of the darkness and chaos of death, what he wanted to hear finally came.

_I love you, Zack._

**I know, it was pretty sad. I wanted to write about Zack's flash of memories right before he passed. Thank you all for reading!**


End file.
